Gutsy Cons Bust Out, Leave Thank-You Note for Guard

One of two prisoners who staged a Hollywood-style escape from a New Jersey jail left behind a thank-you note to a prison guard, the Newark Star-Ledger reports. "Thank you officer for the tools needed. You're a real pal! Happy holidays," it said. The jailbirds chipped away cinder blocks and jumped 30 feet over razor wire to freedom.

Officials are investigating whether the inmates actually had help obtaining tools. Like a scene out of the movie Shawshank Redemption, the men covered holes in a cell wall with photos of bikini-clad women to hide their preparations. And like the film Escape From Alcatraz, based on a real-life escape, the pair, both charged with violent felonies, made dummies from pillows to make it look as if they were asleep in their cells. (More Jose Espinosa stories.)